Re: How the Rally went today in Hartford

Jen: When I had my surgery (Lapband) done in 2003, CTCare covered it 100%, no questions asked, no waiting, no muss, no fuss. When our company re-upped with them last summer, they had changed their policy. Their rep said that they no longer cover gastric bypass surgery. When I asked her if they covered OTHER bariatric procedures, she looked at me like I had two heads. She had no idea that there was more than one WLS procedure so, obviously, I could put very little trust in anything else she had to say. As far as I know, their current policy is the same as the one the guard at the gates to Emerald City had: "Not no how, not now way." : The thing that makes me laugh is that I sat down today and figured out that JUST the savings on prescriptions that I no longer take has been almost $22,000 in the 27 months since my surgery. Even THAT isn't enough reason for these companies to cover the surgeries?? Bette

Bette- what the issue is - is that the savings that is realized (and you at 2 yrs out are just now realizing a savings to them) from the WLS isn't always regained by the company that foots the bill. The problem is that employers or employees change insurance an average of every 2-3 years- and it takes an average of 5 to recoup the loss on the surgery according to the insurance industry- so if you have suregery under company b and then 2 years after join company c - company c reaps the bennies and company b sees it as a loss. In my opinion it all evens out in the end because just as many post ops will awitch from c to b as from b to c....